Sunday, November 9, 2008

Twice a month I volunteer at our local library in their used bookstore. This week when I went in there was a huge stack of cookbooks that had been donated. I started going through them to find some good ones to create a display when I came across these two.The appear to both be first editions & are in beautiful condition except for the missing paper cover on Volume 1. After reading the various autobiographies & biographies of Julia Child I'm really happy to have her masterpieces in my collection. Plus Matt & I are already getting a kick out of reading through them even if we never cook a recipe they contain.

8 comments:

Paul
said...

Oh, yes, definitely a lucky find. I'd say that I learned to cook from Mastering the Art -- while I'd been cooking on my own for the better part of a year before acquiring my copy, it was from Julia Child that I started really to learn about how cooking works as opposed to just following recipes. It was these books that made me interested enough in cooking to read food blogs.

What Child teaches has become my default cuisine, so while my copy was never in as good shape as yours (though my Vol. I has a cover, it's pretty tattered, and the pages of both volumes are somewhat browned and spotty), that's fine with me, because they're in the kitchen with me all the time. The master bread recipe in Vol. II in particular is so impregnated with flour I doubt it's possible to get it all out!

So, yes, you're quite right to be excited; these are a phenomenal addition to any cook's library. :)

I'm right there with Paul -- I basically learned to cook from Volume I - it set me on my way when I got out of college. That's great you found hard-covers. I hate soft-cover cookbooks! My edition is rather beaten up now!

I'm amazed you only came home with 2 cookbooks...and great ones they are. I'm going to tackle some of Julia Child's books very soon...but for today...I had my trip to Costco and of course came home with a new one - Ina Garten's new book.

The food gods are looking down upon you. I just got the 1st volume of Julia Child last year. I got it on sale at Sur La Table (and a free subscription to Bon Appetit). I've only used it a few times (because most things we learned in school) But it's such a great resource for things. I'm glad you have these now :)

Library sales are great for all kinds of inexpensive books, not to mention your friendly neighborhood used bookstore. Congrats on finding this nugget. If you get a chance to read Julia Child's memoir "My Life in France", published posthumously and edited by her nephew check it out too. She had such an interesting life and a great sense of humor.